Company finds niche in moving students

Start-up business operates in nearly 50 cities in the Southeast

Published: Monday, July 8, 2013 at 3:30 a.m.

Last Modified: Sunday, July 7, 2013 at 7:10 p.m.

For parents, helping their college-age kids move to campus is anything but a moving experience.

A new company launched by two Auburn University graduates aims to ease those parents’ pain.

Campus Bellhops employs a team of part-time workers who help move students into dorm rooms, apartments or houses.

The company operates in nearly 50 college towns in the Southeast including Tuscaloosa, Birmingham, Auburn, Huntsville and Mobile.

Founders Stephen Vlahos and Cameron Doody hope to expand to more than 100 cities by 2014, Doody said. They launched Campus Bellhops in 2010 at their alma mater, Auburn University.

“Our first year, we set a goal of 25 student moves,” Doody said. “After three days, we had moved 230 students.”

Matt Patterson, the company’s director of operations, grew up with Vlahos in Birmingham and entered as a full partner in October 2012.

Patterson said 2011-12 proved there was a need in the market for their services.

The company grew so quickly they quit their jobs and moved to Chattanooga, Tenn., where they partnered with venture capital firm Lamp Post Group, Doody said.

Funding from the Lamp Post Group has allowed Campus Bellhops to hire more than 2,000 part-time student employees. Each location has a campus director who recruits, conducts interviews and hires 40 to 60 bellhops. Each bellhop trains online through a series of videos. The campus director is a yearlong intern learning to operate his or her own business.

Patterson said the system is competitive and the jobs posted don’t last long on the board. He said they hire so many bellhops because jobs are taken on a first-come, first-served basis. Bellhops choose jobs based on their schedule and are paid $15 an hour.

Bellhops can be reserved online at campusbellhops.com. The cost is $70 an hour, no matter which service is chosen, with a 90-minute minimum. Services include loading only, unloading only, local “A-to-B” moves and on-site dorm move-ins. Bellhops are insured.

It is not labor only, however. They will rent a truck, pick it up and return it if needed. They do not provide storage.

Campus Bellhops is not only geared toward student moving. It will move anybody who lives within a 15-mile radius of campus.

Patterson said Campus Bellhops is a better fit for students because they don’t need a full-service moving company, and having students move students helps them get acclimated to campus.

“It’s just a good culture fit,” he said.

The company tries to work with universities by running ads in orientation booklets and attending orientation sessions when allowed, Patterson said. However, most of their advertising is done through Yellowbook, Craigslist and coupon codes provided to apartment complexes to give to parents, he said.

<p>For parents, helping their college-age kids move to campus is anything but a moving experience.</p><p>A new company launched by two Auburn University graduates aims to ease those parents' pain.</p><p>Campus Bellhops employs a team of part-time workers who help move students into dorm rooms, apartments or houses.</p><p>The company operates in nearly 50 college towns in the Southeast including Tuscaloosa, Birmingham, Auburn, Huntsville and Mobile.</p><p>Founders Stephen Vlahos and Cameron Doody hope to expand to more than 100 cities by 2014, Doody said. They launched Campus Bellhops in 2010 at their alma mater, Auburn University.</p><p> “Our first year, we set a goal of 25 student moves,” Doody said. “After three days, we had moved 230 students.”</p><p>Matt Patterson, the company's director of operations, grew up with Vlahos in Birmingham and entered as a full partner in October 2012. </p><p>Patterson said 2011-12 proved there was a need in the market for their services. </p><p>The company grew so quickly they quit their jobs and moved to Chattanooga, Tenn., where they partnered with venture capital firm Lamp Post Group, Doody said. </p><p>Funding from the Lamp Post Group has allowed Campus Bellhops to hire more than 2,000 part-time student employees. Each location has a campus director who recruits, conducts interviews and hires 40 to 60 bellhops. Each bellhop trains online through a series of videos. The campus director is a yearlong intern learning to operate his or her own business. </p><p>Patterson said the system is competitive and the jobs posted don't last long on the board. He said they hire so many bellhops because jobs are taken on a first-come, first-served basis. Bellhops choose jobs based on their schedule and are paid $15 an hour.</p><p>Bellhops can be reserved online at campusbellhops.com. The cost is $70 an hour, no matter which service is chosen, with a 90-minute minimum. Services include loading only, unloading only, local “A-to-B” moves and on-site dorm move-ins. Bellhops are insured. </p><p>It is not labor only, however. They will rent a truck, pick it up and return it if needed. They do not provide storage.</p><p>Campus Bellhops is not only geared toward student moving. It will move anybody who lives within a 15-mile radius of campus. </p><p>Patterson said Campus Bellhops is a better fit for students because they don't need a full-service moving company, and having students move students helps them get acclimated to campus.</p><p>“It's just a good culture fit,” he said.</p><p>The company tries to work with universities by running ads in orientation booklets and attending orientation sessions when allowed, Patterson said. However, most of their advertising is done through Yellowbook, Craigslist and coupon codes provided to apartment complexes to give to parents, he said.</p><p>“Really, parents are our customers,” Patterson said. “We try to focus on getting our services in front of parents.”</p><p>Parents and students know what they're getting with Campus Bellhops, Doody said. </p><p>All employees are pre-screened and an email is sent out to the customer with pictures of their bellhops included. </p><p>Although it has transformed from a collegiate moving company to a local moving company, employees remain 100 percent student body, he said.</p><p>“People just love working with college kids so much,” Doody said.</p>